Ad Spend in Social Media Set to Explode in 2024

The Biggest Audience Ever 

According to Forrester, social media platforms offer an audience that is unprecedented in scale. In 2022, some 4.6 billion people -- about 58% of the population -- are active on social media.  

And they’re shopping, engaging with brands and influencers, and learning about products and services that may drive their purchasing decisions for a long time to come. Consider:  

• U.S. revenues from social commerce will top $64 billion in sales this year, and $86 billion next year; 
• 85% of men and 86% of women say social media sways their buying decisions; 
   
• 34% of shoppers say they rely on social media to discover new products (if you’re not there they won’t learn about your brand!)  

What is Social Commerce? 

Social commerce is the practice of buying and selling products or services directly through social media platforms. Think of it as a convergence of social media interactions with the traditional e-commerce experience.  

Social commerce allows potential customers to discover your products in a place they visit multiple times a day: their social media feeds. The channel allows them to browse, click on them to learn more, and potentially complete the entire purchase process without leaving the platform. This creates a shopping experience that is completely without friction. 

How it Works 

How can a shopper purchase from your brand without visiting your ecommerce site, you ask? That’s where headless commerce comes in.  Headless commerce decouples the front-end presentation layer (what customers see) from the back-end functionality (shopping cart, product data, payments) of an online store. This allows for greater flexibility and customization in designing the shopping experience. 

And with the proliferation of digital wallets, shoppers don’t need to dig out their credit cards to pay for what they buy -- a few clicks and they’re done. 

 New Customer Acquisition and Social Media 

Let’s look at some key sectors where social media is the perfect channel for both acquiring new customers and making sales.  

Beauty 

According to Influencer Marketing Hub, an astounding 65% of beauty consumers decide to buy a cosmetic product after hearing reviews from influencers on social media. The revenue can be game changing: cosmetic company Glossier reached over $100 million in revenue just four years after its launch in 2010, and Kylie Cosmetics has been very successful since its launch in 2015 due to Kylie Jenner's strong online following.  

Huddled Masses worked with a beauty brand to attract new customers and boost sales with a smart campaign that reached users on Facebook and TikTok. Our campaign drove all metrics: site visits, click, conversions, ROAS and more. Checkout our case study here. 

Elections 

Social media is a critical channel for candidates and political parties. This year, political ads will account for $12 billion, including social media. Social media will be a beneficiary of this spending, seeing an 87% increase over 2020. 

Huddled Masses has experience helping campaigns to reach voters in social media channels. We ran ads on Instagram and Facebook using ZIP-code targeting to reach areas in which a strong impact would deliver the strongest results. Checkout our case study on Political Campaign Targeting. 

Events 

Social media and event marketing, particularly for concerts and festivals, go hand in hand. By setting up a dedicated event page on platforms on the right platform, and including captivating visuals, artist information, ticket details, and a clear call to action (like "Buy Tickets Now"), you can drive ticket sales and attendance. 

In fact, social media can be one of the most cost-effective ways to promote events by reaching a large audience, engaging with potential attendees, and providing real-time feedback. 

This is an area where Huddled Masses has significant expertise. We helped a Hip Hop and R&B festival generate $3.5 million from ticket sales, and achieve a 4,337% overall campaign ROI. Check out how we did it here. 

Which Platform is Right for Your Brand? 

The answer depends on your products, key demographics, sales cycle and other factors. We at Huddled Masses are happy to help you craft a social media campaign to meet your needs. 

That said, each platform does tend to attract a unique demographic. Here’s a quick overview: 

Ready to get started?